Heritage Rolls 39-0 Over Freedom In Opener
(South Riding, VA) - It took about 1 quarter for the Heritage Pride to get the big plays going, but after it started, there was nothing Freedom could do to stop it. Freedom played outstanding defense in the first twelve minutes of the game and Heritage sputtered a bit on offense, but the Pride defense also was stingy and neither team could get any points on the scoreboard. That changed in the second quarter when returning All Gameday player Bobby Edmonds caught a 37 yard touchdown pass down the left sideline for the Pride's first score of the season. Edmonds was only getting started in what could turn out to be the most impressive performance of the week in Northern Virginia. With Heritage leading 12-0 at halftime, Edmonds took the opening kickoff of the second half and took it to the house, going 87 yards for his second touchdown. Edmonds would later add another long touchdown catch and an interception on his way to being named the Perfect Performance Player of the Game
On defense, Heritage received a great performance from linebacker Zak Burkhard. Burkhard was all over the place and kept the Eagles running game in check. Burkhard was named the Line-X Tough Guy of the Game and was a key contributor in the Pride's first win of the season.
One of the interesting notes about the first half was that Heritage senior quarterback Joe Laura went down on the second series with an injury that would sideline him for the rest of the game. Laura's injury opened the door for junior Kyle Nelson, and Nelson didn't disappoint. Nelson played well and threw 2 TD's to Edmonds and ran another in from 40 yards out.
Freedom received solid performances from several young players who figure to become well known in the Dulles District in the future. Running Back Ron Hill was impressive and his talents will keep Freedom in future games all season long. Jake Ashton also played a very good game on offense and defense.
With the win, Heritage improved to 1-0 and Freedom fell to 0-1. The Pride will travel to Millbrook next week for a tough non-district matchup and Freedom will travel to Briar Woods to meet the Falcons who beat Hyde 53-6 in tonight's action...
